General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Mask up even if vaccinated. Even if Vaccinated! [View all]BigmanPigman
(51,583 posts)Most of the staff at both supermarkets were masked but a lot weren't. I was surprised by this.
Since I had a fever, chills, aches, etc for a week w weeks ago I am more certain that what I caught was aerosolized. If you can smell cigaretre smoke theough a mask, that is a sign of how aerosolized strains spread.
"Not enough emphasis on airborne transmission".
Fleeting contact is an accurate descriptor that underlines the airborne nature of the virus, says Prof Nancy Baxter, head of the University of Melbournes school of population and global health.
The spread is more likely if youre close to the person [but] theres still a potential for virus particles to be in the air, and breathed in by someone passing by, she said. This is true of both the original Covid-19 virus and the Delta variant.
"After months of growing scientific evidence, the World Health Organization formally acknowledged the airborne spread of Covid in April. It can occur when viral particles remain suspended in the air or travel farther than one metre.
"Laboratory studies have found particles of the virus can linger in the air in aerosolised form for up to 16 hours."
"Respiratory aerosols accumulate in the same way that cigarette smoke accumulates, she said.
In an indoor space where the ventilation isnt adequate, somebody with the infection could have come and gone, but the virus is still lingering in the air. So if you walk through that area and you breathe that air, you could get infected.
"People are still kind of stuck in that mindset of hand sanitiser and washing your hands, when actually the message we need to be getting out there is its the air you breathe, Macintyre said."
Ventilation makes a difference. If youre having people over, open the window. If youre driving in a car with people, open the window, even a little bit. Wear masks. Its the shared air that matters the most.
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/jun/24/its-in-the-air-you-breathe-what-you-need-to-know-about-sydneys-delta-covid-variant